With rumours gathering pace that West Ham United have agreed an £8m deal with Southampton for their captain Jose Fonte, Slaven Bilic looks close to making a key breakthrough in the January transfer window.

Bilic has identified a new central defender and striker as priorities for his side and appears close to landing a real coup with the purchase of Fonte, who has agitated for a move from Southampton.

Here, we look at what needs to happen to get the deal over the line.

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Cough up a bit more cash

Maybe not up front right away, but as always, add-ons will bump up the price.

Southampton value the 33-year-old at around £10m so while the two clubs may have agreed on £8 up front, the Londoners might need to bump it up to closer to £10m to absolutely ensure the deal gets over the line.

What could that be? Maybe staying in the Premier League for one, any sell on fee, playing a certain number of games etc etc, you know the drill with add-ons.

Fonte has submitted a transfer request at Southampton

Maybe offer something in return?

The Saints have had a bid for Liverpool exile Mamadou Sakho rejected by the Reds, so they clearly want a replacement before letting go of their captain, who has handed in a transfer request.

West Ham could help out in that regard, with potential to send James Collins the other way, or maybe Angelo Ogbonna.

Don’t rule out the Hammers possibly sending Reece Oxford down to the south coast on loan, Bilic told football.london earlier today that he would like to see the teenager get some experience out on loan.

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Wages shouldn’t be an issue, what with Simone Zaza now off the books in E20 so the cash in the budget is there to pay Fonte.

Boss Bilic was asked whether Fonte was having a medical today, his response was no. But, critically, the Croat didn’t then dismiss any move for Fonte, admitting that he was working on a couple of transfers before dropping the 24 hours line. So, we are all holding our breath.

Finalising the details of the contract

Depends who you ask. £10m or more for a 33-year-old centre back is a risky move, for sure. You can’t imagine him being offered anything more than a three-year deal.

We know Fonte is an excellent defender, there’s a reason he has contributed to 51 clean sheets in 154 Premier League appearances. Is he an upgrade on Angelo Ogbonna? Yes. James Collins? Yes.

Slaven Bilic is desperate for a new defender (Image: Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)

The potential partnership with Winston Reid is one that should be exciting, with the Kiwi establishing himself as a top-class defender in this division this season.

Seeing off competition

Yes. Fonte handed in a transfer request as we all heard of overtures from big hitters Liverpool and Manchester United. But, West Ham's interest has caught plenty by surprise.

West Bromwich Albion have also reportedly had a bid accepted for Fonte as well so is he not as highly-rated as we thought he was? Time will tell.